School of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
School of Nursing, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.
J Wound Care. 2020 Jul 1;29(Sup7):S16-S22. doi: 10.12968/jowc.2020.29.Sup7.S16.
The World Health Organization estimates that between 2015 and 2050 the proportion of the world's population over 60 years old will nearly double from 12% to 22%. An often overlooked byproduct of ageing is the skin changes associated with it, which heighten the risk of developing skin tears. Despite this presumed increased risk, the true impact of skin tears across age groups and care settings is poorly understood. The purpose of the present study was to establish the prevalence and incidence of skin tears in the Ontario long-term care population.
A prospective study design was used to explore the prevalence and incidence of skin tears. Individuals from four long-term care facilities in Ontario were followed over four weeks. The participants were examined for skin tears at the beginning of the study and at week four to determine whether skin tears had occurred and to record the skin tear type and location.
A total of 380 individuals, aged 65 years and over, took part. The study found a skin tear prevalence of 20.8% and an incidence of 18.9% within four weeks. These results provide much needed data on the burden of skin tears in the long-term care population. Conclusion: The present study is an important first step towards developing a prevention programme targeting individuals at risk for skin tears in long-term care.
世界卫生组织估计，在 2015 年至 2050 年间，全球 60 岁以上人口的比例将从 12%增加到 22%左右。随着年龄的增长，皮肤会发生变化，这往往是一个被忽视的副产品，它会增加皮肤撕裂的风险。尽管有这种假定的风险增加，但皮肤撕裂在不同年龄组和护理环境中的真正影响仍未被充分了解。本研究的目的是确定安大略省长期护理人群中皮肤撕裂的流行率和发生率。
采用前瞻性研究设计来探讨皮肤撕裂的流行率和发生率。安大略省的四个长期护理机构的个体在四周内接受了随访。在研究开始时和第 4 周对参与者进行皮肤撕裂检查，以确定是否发生了皮肤撕裂，并记录皮肤撕裂的类型和位置。
共有 380 名 65 岁及以上的个体参与了研究。研究发现，在四周内皮肤撕裂的流行率为 20.8%，发生率为 18.9%。这些结果提供了急需的关于长期护理人群中皮肤撕裂负担的数据。结论：本研究是朝着为长期护理中存在皮肤撕裂风险的个体制定预防计划迈出的重要第一步。
